Sidra Medicine
Doha, Qatar: The Heart Centre at Sidra Medicine provides medical and surgical care for children and adults with congenital heart disease with a high success rate. It also treats children and young people with acquired heart conditions.
The Heart Centre increased the number of therapeutic cardiac catheterisation procedures and electrophysiology procedures in 2022, recording a high success rate, comparable to international peer centers, and implemented the latest technology in echocardiography, including 3D-based ventricular volume and function, Prof Ziyad M Hijazi, Chief Medical Officer and Chair of the Cardiovascular Diseases Department, told The Peninsula.
“The heart centre boasts a world-renowned team, cutting edge facilities and a best-in-class model that delivers comprehensive one-stop care for patients and their families. We also attract patients from across the MENA region. Last year, we cared for 59 international patients,” said Prof Hijazi.
According to the annual report in 2022, the Heart Centre provided a total of 8,000 consultations and 200 heart operations were performed. The number of operations was increased by 33%, compared to 150 operations in 2021. The Cardiac Intensive Care unit saw 335 admissions, while as many as 500 procedures were conducted.
“Despite a substantial number of patients and challenges in terms of staff capacity and limited space, the Centre was able to accommodate most of the new referrals within a period of two weeks or less, approaching patient care in a manner that ensured high patient satisfaction,” said Prof. Hijazi.
In 2022, Sidra Medicine was selected as the first hospital in the Middle East and North Africa region to offer the newly commercially certified Venus P-Valve for transcatheter pulmonary valve implantations.
“The Venus P-valve has been an exciting and collaborative journey of success that has moved from research and development to becoming a commercially certified product, with Sidra Medicine playing key role in development and implementation as a certified minimally invasive valve implantation option for cardiac patients worldwide,” said Prof Hijazi.
Sidra Medicine’s extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) service was awarded Silver Level accreditation from the ExtraCorporeal Life Support Organisation (ELSO), a remarkable recognition for a new ECMO service. The ECMO works by taking over the function of the lungs and sometimes the heart, and allowing the organs to rest and recover from reversible conditions like Meconium Aspiration Syndrome (MAS).
The Heart Centre also works closely with the American College of Cardiology to collect quality-focused data for the IMPACT Registry on the management and outcomes of paediatric and adult congenital heart disease patients who undergo diagnostic and interventional catheterisations.
